On Wednesday, the Planning & Budget Committee will continue its discussion of the budget. President Mohr and the administrative team have worked closely with Planning & Budget to meet the reduction goals set by the District. Participation in Planning & Budget meetings has been high and additional ideas are appreciated. "These are obviously difficult budget times," said President Mohr. "We are all working to find solutions. I hope to hear from a large cross-section of the campus on this issue in the coming months."
CAMPUS NEWS
Administrative Team Identifies $523,000 in Budget Savings
Proposal to Eliminate Dean of University Center & Academic Services Would Create Additionl Savings
The Cañada administrative team, working closely with the Planning & Budget Committee and College Council, has identified $523,000 in proposed savings for mid-year. That represents approximately 4.5 percent of the Fund 1 budget. The savings are found in a wide range of categories, including adjunct faculty, hourly counseling, student assistants, professional memberships, conferences expenses, and short term hourly employees. “We have been able to find a 5 percent savings to our budget without compromising the mission of the college,” President Tom Mohr said. “We will continue to discuss ways to trim our budget to meet the district’s needs while maintaining the integrity of our mission.”
The Budget & Planning Committee is expected to approve a second proposal that will eliminate the position of Dean of the University Center & Academic Services to help the college get through what is expected to be a tight budget year. Skyline and College of San Mateo are preparing budget reductions and the District has proposed early retirement and voluntary separation incentives and is expected to begin managed hiring.
Vice President of Instruction Search to Continue
Goals is to have new VPI at the end of spring semester
The college will renew the search for a new Vice President of Instruction after the initial search did not result in a candidate who received the wide support of the campus community.
"We will renew the search for the Vice President Instruction, a truly critical position involving the leadership and guidance of all the instruction programs of the college," said President Mohr. "It touches directly the efficacy of a fundamental role and purpose of the institution, i.e. teaching and learning. The instructional leader works closely with those who write and deliver curriculum and requires high levels of skill, knowledge and commitment. For this reason we will not compromise. Good will not be good enough. Only superb will do."
Mohr said a search committee will be formed and the goal is to have a new VPI on campus at the end of spring semester.
Cañada’s SHPE Chapter Honored for Growth
Students Spearhead Major Effort to Increase Membership
In one semester Cañada’s chapter of the Society for Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) grew from fewer than five members to 54 and was honored at the organization’s national conference in November.
“It’s really exciting,” said Cathy Lipe, director of the Mathematics, Science, Engineering, Achievement (MESA) program. “The students have really taken ownership in the club and it is now very active.”
It all started when Lipe challenged several students to make the club more active. “Our MESA director insisted that we, the students, needed to enhance our chapter and convinced some of us to attend the latest regional conference in Sacramento,” said Jeremy Morales Madrigal, chapter co-president. “That weekend was the starting point for the new era of the Cañada College SHPE chapter. Those of us who attended the regional conference got together to figure out ways to organize our chapter and make it grow. Immediately this fall we formed our board, started a recruiting campaign and got familiarized with www.oneshpe.org. Our chapter grew from two or three members to an amazing 54 members in less than one semester.”
Along with the growth award, two Cañada students received SHPE scholarships. They include Madrigal and Violeta Crow, Computer Science & Engineering major.
Cañada College Inducted Into Chamber Leadership Hall of Fame
The college becomes the first organization inducted into the Redwood City/Belmont/San Carlos Chamber of Commerce Leadership Hall of Fame.
Cañada College became the first organization to be inducted into the Redwood City/Belmont/San Carlos Chamber of Commerce Leadership Hall of Fame.
Cañada was inducted at a special ceremony held on Nov. 12. The college was inducted alongside Barbara Pierce, a 1998 graduate of Leadership and former Redwood City Mayor. “This is a tremendous honor,” said President Mohr. “We truly believe in the benefits of the chamber’s leadership program.”
The college has supported the leadership program from its inception in 1988. Cañada has offered its assistance in helping to develop and deliver the program and has sent 21 employees through Leadership beginning with the very first class. “The leadership program is an important part of the local community’s efforts to develop the potential of people,” Mohr said. “It benefits the college when our employees participate in the program and it benefits the college when we host meetings and other events on campus. It’s a great honor to be recognized and inducted into the chamber’s Leadership Hall of Fame.”
FACES OF CAÑADA
Katie Townsend-Merino to Join Foothill
Jennifer Castello will serve as interim dean of Humanities & Social Sciences
Katie Townsend-Merino, Dean of Humanities and Social Sciences for the past three years, has been named the new Vice President of Instruction at Foothill College. Townsend-Merino arrived at Cañada College from Palomar College where she was a psychology professor for 20 years. She headed a department at Palomar with 20 full-time and 65 part-time faculty members. She served as Faculty Senate President and was part of the steering committee developing the college’s strategic planning process. She was also honored with the 2004 Distinguished Faculty Award for Excellence in Teaching from the faculty at Palomar. She was instrumental in the accreditation process and the strategic planning process at Cañada.
“Katie will be missed,” said President Tom Mohr. “She was instrumental in a number of key initiatives at Cañada and she will be very difficult to replace.”
Margie Carrington Honored With Two Awards
Director of Financial Aid Honored For Her Leadership
Margie Carrington, Director of Financial Aid, has been honored by two professional organizations for her leadership. She was presented with a 2008 Leadership Award from the California Community Colleges Student Financial Aid Administrators Association for her advocacy on federal legislation. She worked with local representatives to help them understand the concerns the community college's had with provisions in the proposed language of House Resolution 4137 and its companion bill as it moved through Congress.
She was also presented with the California Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators Leadership Award in recognition of outstanding contributions to the financial aid profession and the students of California's community colleges.
Editor's Note: If you have ideas for the Faces of Cañada section of the online newsletter, please contact Robert Hood at ext. 3340 or by e-mail at hoodr@smccd.edu.
SPOTLIGHT ON STUDENTS
Theater Major Receives $1,000 Scholarship
Hillsdale High School Graduate Plans Acting Career
Shelly Kudrov, a first-year student majoring in Theater Arts, has received a $1,000 scholarship for people with visual impairments from the Walter Young Foundation.
“The scholarship really helps,” she said. “I have multiple limitations making it impossible for me to work at this time in my life, so making it by on disability payments can be tough. Coming to school and learning to act really helps brighten my days and keep me going.”
Shelly is a graduate of Hillsdale High School and has been a performer in the Bay Area for a number of years. “I used to be a dancer with our own local theater, Broadway by the Bay, as well as dancing professionally at Disneyland. But I have been unable to dance for years now due to several knee surgeries. Having been involved in theater my whole life through dance, it was a natural match for me to turn to acting.”
This fall was her first semester working with Theater Arts Professor, Anna Budd and she said it has made a remarkable impact on her life. “Turning to acting has been fantastic. It’s another way of self-expression for me, comparable to dance. I am very lucky to have such a talented teacher and acting coach in Anna Budd. I’m always excited to go to her class.”
Shelly also participates in the Adaptive Physical Education class at Canada and says that it has been tremendously helpful for keeping a positive outlook despite her physical challenges. “Barbara McCarthy, the teacher for my P.E. class, really helps me stay motivated and offers me creative ideas for working out.”
Shelly has already earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Cal State Long Beach and at this point she is simply learning the craft of acting and hopes to continue pursuing acting in both film and on stage.
“I love the stage and acting. It is where I feel most happy and alive.” she said.
Cañada Engineering Students Selected For Extreme Engineering Challenge
Students worked with group of nine engineering students from four-year colleges
Three Cañada College engineering students were recently selected to participate in the Extreme Engineering challenge, a hands-on job interview that involved working with other college students for a corporate team to solve a problem. The students were Arturo Montoya, Edgar DeLoa, and Jeremy Morales-Madrigal. The students were each on a different corporate team and worked in a group with nine other engineers (all from 4-year universities) on an Extreme Engineering project. They had 24 hours to develop a solution and present their work. The program is billed as a 24-hour job interview and engineering challenge. “It’s a fantastic opportunity,” said Cathy Lipe, MESA Director at Cañada.
Editor's Note: If you have an idea for a student feature, contact Robert Hood at ext. 3340.
CAMPUS CALENDAR
Please see the EVENTS CALENDAR for the latest event listings.
Editor's Note: If you would like to submit an event to the Cañada Calendar of Events please contact Robert Hood at hoodr@smccd.edu.
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